Smile for Me
by Smurf2005
Summary: Ichigo and Masaya had been broken up for a few years when Ichigo started to have feelings for Ryou. Both are too stubborn to admit it. And if they do admit it, will it last? One night threatens to tear their lives apart, and it succeeds in ruining their life. Rated "M" for later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hello everyone! Smurf is posting a new story! Yes, I am fully aware I have about five other stories to work on. I have between now and the new year to get a few chapters done. Anyways, I have posted a story called _She Couldn't Forget _which is a sequel to _A Wish and Sadness. _I am also posting a story called _Forbidden Love. _That is my Christmas story for this year. I will not be posting anything for the rest of the year. I will start posting after the new year though. This story is a _Tokyo Mew Mew_ story that I got an idea for one night. This is Ryou and Ichigo, as always, and it will have a lemon in a later chapter. If you read _I Love You_, I promise that this lemon will be better than what I wrote years ago. I do hope you enjoy this story!

Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew. _Ikumi and Yoshida Reiko own it. If I owned it, Ryou and Ichigo would be together. They are meant for each other. You know they are!

Edit: I had every intention of posting my Christmas story today, but I accidently saved over it and everything was gone. I will be back to post it for you on December 22, 2011. Sorry if you are looking forward to reading it.

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter One<span>

Five years had passed since Masaya and I had broken up. After middle school, him and I went our separate ways. We were very different people. So much had happened to us, and it changed us. The break-up wasn't nasty, it was actually pretty easy. After we broke up, he went off to America to study and I stayed in Japan, where I knew where I belonged. We still kept in contact, and he had turned out to be one of my best friends.

Right now, I was finishing up my shift at the café. I was mopping the floor and the other girls were cleaning the tables and putting the chairs up on the tables. After we were done, we went into the locker rooms and took off our uniforms.

"So, Ichigo," Mint said, looking over at me, "when are you going to tell Ryou that you love him?"

I looked over at her a little shocked, and the other four girls paused in their getting dressed to hear what I had to say.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"Oh come on, Ichigo. It is obvious that you love him. You have been madly in love with him for a few years now. Just suck it up and tell him how you feel!" Mint said.

Lettuce turned away from us and pulled her shirt over her head. She stuffed her uniform in her bag and stalked out of the locker room. It was common knowledge that she loved Ryou. But, so did I, though I didn't want to admit it. I pulled my shirt over my head and slipped on my sneakers and picked up my bag. Mint followed me badgering me to tell Ryou my feelings. I was arguing with her when we heard voices coming from the kitchen. It sounded like Ryou and Lettuce.

"But, Ryou!" Lettuce was saying. "I love you! Why can't you see that? I have been pursuing you for years now! Why won't you respond to my feelings?"

"Lettuce, I have told you over and over. We are better off as friends. I do not have any romantic feelings for you!" Ryou said.

There was silence for a few moments. It sounded like someone was crying, I had my suspicions that it was Lettuce. After all, she was the one who just had her heart broken, and from the sounds of it, it seemed like that's all that kept happening.

"Is it because of _her_?" Lettuce asked, bitterly.

The bitterness in Lettuces voice stunned me. In all the years I knew her, I had never heard so much bitterness in her voice. I heard Ryou sigh before he started to speak again.

"You know everything has to do with her. She is the one that keeps me going. I have loved her for a long time now."

So Ryou was in love with someone? I found myself wondering who it was, but I also found myself a little sad since I loved him, too. I heard footsteps and Lettuce came bursting out of the kitchen. She saw me and Mint and after glaring at me, she took off. I was a little confused. I had no reason to have her glare at me. I glanced over at Mint and was surprised to see her smirking. I opened my mouth to say something when the door opened again and out came the blond haired man of my dreams.

"Hey, are you two on your way home?" Ryou asked.

"I was, but I think Ichigo has something to say to you," Mint said, her smirk turning evil. "I will see you tomorrow. Call me later, Ichigo."

Ignoring my protests, she walked away and waved. Damn her and that smirk.

"What did you want to tell me, Ichigo?" Ryou asked.

I looked up at him, unable to say anything. Was he always this cute? As I just stared at him, his brow furrowed in concern and he reached out to feel my forehead. When his hand touched my face, I jumped back in shock and I felt my face turn red.

"Wh-what are you doing, Ryou?" I stammered.

"I was just checking to see if you were feeling alright. You were acting like a space case. Not that that is anything new. You are always acting like a space case and a klutz."

He was looking thoughtful and I felt anger rising up in me. What was his problem? He always insults me when he sees me, that wasn't new, but he insulted me after I thought he was being sweet and worrying about me.

"Ryou! You're a baka!" I yelled.

Before I knew it, my hand had reached out to slap him across the face, but he grabbed it before I could strike.

"Ichigo? What's wrong with you? Did I say something wrong?" he asked, even more concerned than before.

"You can be such a jerk, Ryou!"

I pulled my hand out of his grip and ran for the door, without looking back. I ran a few blocks before I slowed to a walk. What _was _his problem? He was acting like a total jerk. He may be cute, but as soon as he opens his mouth, he is so not cute anymore. Though, I couldn't deny how I felt about him. He may be a jerk to me all the time, I couldn't help but love him. I looked forward going to work just to see him. I felt the heat rising in my face and I quickened my pace.

When I reached home, I slipped off my shoes and yelled for my mom. I didn't get a reply, and feeling curious, I wandered into the kitchen and found a note. My mom and dad had gone out on a date and would return in the morning. I knew what that meant. I rolled my eyes as I put the note down and headed up the stairs to my room. I needed to start on my homework before I headed to bed.

When I reached my room, I pulled my books out of my bag and placed them on my desk. I sat down in my chair and attempted to do my homework, but my eyes kept being drawn a picture on my desk. It was a picture that was taken after we had defeated the Saint Rose Crusaders. We had just started our delivery service for the café. We were all standing in front of the café. It was a much simpler time, when everything wasn't so complicated. My eyes drifted to the corkboard above my desk, where I had a picture of Ryou tacked to it. Mint had managed to get it at a party a couple months ago and gave it to me.

I shook my head and continued on with my homework. It took me a good two hours to get through all of it, since my eyes kept getting drawn to the picture of Ryou. I cursed my heart, since it was its fault for falling in love with Ryou in the first place. I moved my books to the side and my head dropped forward onto the desk with a small thud. As I sat there, my phone started to ring. I picked it up and without looking at name, I answered it.

"Hey Mint," I said.

"How did you know it was me?" her voice asked.

I sat up, a small smile playing across my lips.

"You are the only one that calls me," I said.

"So, what happened between you and Ryou after I left?" she asked. "Are you two all lovey-dovey now?"

"Hmph. No. He basically insulted me and I stormed out."

"But, he does that all the time," Mint said.

"I know, but he was being very sweet at first. Then his claws came out and he tried to claw out my heart," I said, going downstairs to draw a bath.

"Nice metaphor, Ichigo," Mint said, sarcastically.

"That's how I felt," I said.

"Well, I am going to talk to him tomorrow," Mint said. "I need to go now though. My break is over."

We hung up and as the water ran, I wandered into the kitchen, thinking about to cook for dinner. It was going to be a long night alone.

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><p>AN: What did you think of the first chapter? Did you like it? I am trying to get my TMM mojo flowing. It has been a long time since I wrote a story like this. I wanted to do something a little different from what I normally write. I am not going to lie to you, this story will turn out sad. But, in order to see what will happen, you will need to read my story as it unfolds. Anyways, please read and review. Remember constructive criticism is welcome, but please no flames. Merry Christmas and happy new year! See you next year!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Hello everyone! I finished chapter two for you all! I wasn't planning on it, but I got it done in time! I hope you enjoy it so far! I have big plans for this story! I did say in chapter one that this story will have a lemon, hence the high rating. With the way things will turn out in later chapters, I decided to write one. I do not know when it will show up. I will let you know in the chapter before and the chapter it's in. But, like I said, in the first chapter, I will not be posting anymore stories after my Christmas story is posted. If you like _Gakuen Alice_, please check it out. Just make sure you read the summery before you start reading it... Anways, enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew_. Ikumi and Yoshida Reiko do. If I did, I would keep Ryou. He is just so cute! He is part of my fantasy Harem. Lol.

Edit: Please see chapter one about my _Gakuen Alice _story.

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter Two<span>

I sighed as I rolled over. I was having a good dream about Ryou. He had confessed his love to me and was about to kiss me when I woke up. I hated that. I opened my eyes and looked at the clock. I stared at the clock for a few minutes before I jumped up out of bed. I was ten minutes late for work. I cursed as I quickly got ready for work and grabbed my bag with my uniform. I knew I was in for it when I got to work. I could just feel it.

I pushed open the back door and looked around. Good; the coast was clear. I tip-toed toward the locker room, hoping that I wouldn't get caught. I had to come with an excuse, since I was really late for work at this point. I was half-way to the locker room when a voice spoke behind me.

"Nice of you to join us, Ichigo," Ryou said behind me.

I whipped around, my eyes searching for the source of the voice. Ryou was leaning up against a wall, beside a column. He pushed himself away from the wall and started to walk toward me. I stood rooted to the spot. I couldn't move, and I didn't know why. It was almost like the gaze from his sapphire blue eyes kept me rooted to the spot. He reached me and he pushed me up against the nearest wall. My heart was pounding really fast and I thought that it would pop out of my chest at any second. I gazed up at him, and I could feel my face turn red. What was he doing?

A smirk graced his lips and he leaned toward me. Was he going to kiss me? The dream I had kept playing in my mind. I closed my eyes tightly. This couldn't be happening. I felt his breath on my lips; he had to have been an inch away from kissing me.

"Baka strawberry," he whispered.

My eyes snapped open and I could see a mischievous glint in his eyes. I felt my temper rising and I pushed him away from me.

"I'm not the baka, you are!" I said, my teeth clenched.

"But, I am not the one late for work. Again," he said, lazily, leaning against the wall again. "Docking your pay doesn't seem to work. I will come up with a punishment later. For now, get dressed and get out into the café ASAP. We are busy."

I turned my back on him and stalked toward the locker room, growling softly. As I changed from my street clothes into my uniform, I couldn't help but think about what had happened between me and Ryou. He was so close to me. All I had to do was lean forward an inch and my lips would have met his. I could also feel the warmth of his body and I could smell his scent. Ryou smelled like vanilla and lavender. I could feel my face turning red as I thought about what happened in the hallway.

"Damn it, Ryou," I whispered. "What have you done to me?"

I sighed and headed out into the café. Busy was an understatement. We were packed and we had a long line of people waiting to get in. I groaned inwardly and as I glanced around, I saw Mint and Lettuce flash me evil looks, Lettuces could have killed me if she wanted it to.

The day was very long and when it finally ended, I breathed a sigh of relief. Mint walked over to me and glared at me.

"Why were you late, Ichigo?" she asked.

"I'm sorry! My alarm didn't go off!" I said, starting to feel frightened.

Mint could be scary when she was angry. She continued to glare at me, then her gaze softened. She smiled at me and I paled. Her smile was even deadlier when she was angry.

"Since you were late, you are going to clean this whole café by yourself," Mint said, her voice like poisoned honey.

"Y-yes, Mint," I mumbled.

Mint and the other four girls left me alone in the café to clean it by myself. It didn't really matter though, I was used to it. Zakuro was hardly around, Pudding and Lettuce were always making messes, Mint was always drinking her tea and Berry was out with her boyfriend, Tasuku, making deliveries. So, that always left me to clean the café. I was going around, putting the chairs up on the tables, when I saw Ryou enter the café. He looked over me and beckoned me over to a table I hadn't reached yet. I sat down across from him and waited for his punishment.

"Momomiya Ichigo for being so late so many times this month, I am going to have to ask you to-" he started.

"Please don't fire me, Ryou!" I said, cutting him off. "I really like this job! I am so sorry I was late! I promise it won't happen again!"

"Ichigo! Please calm down! I am not going to fire you! I was going to ask you to accompany me to a party tomorrow night as my date. You will have to do everything I say. This is your punishment."

I was surprised at first. All I had to do was go to a party with him as his date? That didn't sound so hard. There was a part me that was very happy. Even though it was a punishment, it was still a date. I had a date with Ryou!

"Okay. I will accept the punishment," I said.

"Good. Now since the café is closed tomorrow, I need you here at five o'clock. The party starts at seven, and I need you here early so you can get ready. I will have everything here that you need. So, you just need to bring yourself."

"I understand," I said.

"Good. See you tomorrow at five."

He stood up and walked away, either going down to the basement or going upstairs to his room. I finished cleaning the café and changed in the locker room. I was feeling pretty excited. Even thought it was a punishment, it was also a date. I was finally getting my chance. I wasn't going to let this chance get away from me. I had to figure out to get him to love me. I ran all the way home to prepare for the following day.

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><p>AN: Well, what did you think? The next chapter is going to be the punishment/date. I was going to make that part of this chapter, but I decided against it. So, who do you think will confess to who first? Do you think Ryou will confess his love to Ichigo? Or do you think Ichigo will confess first? He he. Only I know, and if you wanna know, you will have to continue to read my story! Sadly, I will not be posting anything until after the new year, so please keep your eyes open for that! Anyways, please read and review. Remember constructive criticism is welcome, but please no flames. Merry Christmas and happy new year! See you next year!


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: I had no intention of writing the third chapter and getting it posted. But, I wanted to write it. I hadn't posted my Christmas story yet (refer to chapter one), so I decided to go ahead and get this next chapter typed up and posted. This chapter is the punishment/date. You will get to see Ryou be kind of jealous. Hehe. Also, this idea I got from volume 2 of _Special A_. So, anyways, enjoy and check out my _Gakuen Alice_ story!

Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew. _Ikumi and Yoshida Reiko own it. If I owned it, Ryou would belong to me, and me alone...

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter Three<span>

When I awoke the next morning, I jumped out of bed and skipped downstairs for breakfast.

"You seem happy this morning, Ichigo," my mom said.

"That's because I have a date with Ryou tonight," I said.

"Oh? What kind of date?" she asked, her eyebrow raised slightly.

"There is some sort of party and he wants me to be his date," I said, purposefully leaving out that it was actually a punishment.

"Well, I hope you have fun," she said.

The rest of the day passed uneventfully. I was finding it hard to keep myself busy, since the day seemed to be going by very slowly. So, I busied myself with a video game. Before I knew it, it was three, so I took a bath a little earlier than normal and I left for the café a little after four. I wanted to make sure I was there on time.

I made it a little before five and I walked in through the back door. The café was very quiet and it was a little creepy. I walked in and looked around. I didn't see Ryou around. I was thinking that he was in his room, so I went upstairs and noticed that the door was slightly open. I peeked in and saw Ryou. It looked like he had just gotten out of the shower. As I stared at him, I felt my face turn red and I had a sense of Déjà vu. Of course I would feel that way. I remembered when I first started to work here. I had come up to tell Ryou off and I caught him half naked, just like he was now. Though, he was more half naked now, then he was back then. Staring at him made me remember why I was so attracted to him. Not only did I find him extremely sexy, I liked the way we always argued. When we argued, I felt alive. Then there was the time when he would protect me as Alto. I always had a feeling that maybe he had feelings for me, but, if he did, then they probably died a long time ago.

I had been staring at him for awhile, that he caught me spying. I saw him coming toward the door and I bolted. I was running downstairs and I knew that if I could make it to the locker room, I could at least lock the door. My animal genes kicked in, but Ryou was able to transform in Alto and he was able to overtake me. He transformed back into his human form and blocked my way.

"I see you made it on time, Ichigo. Did you like what you saw?" he asked.

I felt my face flush and I looked away from him to hide the blush.

"I wasn't looking because I liked what I saw," I said.

He walked over to me and flicked my forehead gently.

"Keep telling yourself that, Strawberry," he said, smiling. "Go on to the locker room and get ready."

I nodded and walked toward the locker room. My face was as red as a tomato and I raised my hand and gently touched the spot Ryou had flicked. It didn't hurt or anything like that. I opened the door to the locker room and my hand fell from my forehead. I was in a daze, and it took me a couple moments to notice what was in the room.

Standing in the middle of the room was the most beautiful dress I had ever seen. I walked over to it and touched the fabric. The dress was made of light pink silk with beaded flowers all down the front of it. It was strapless and it was floor length. As I was looking at the dress, I didn't notice that there were two other people in the room.

"You must be Momomiya-san," one of the girls said.

I jumped and looked over at the two girls.

"Oh! I didn't notice that anyone was in here!" I said.

"I am Nakamura Mika and this is my sister, Miku. We were hired by Shirogane-sama to help you get ready for the party."

With the help of the sisters, I was ready to go by six-fifteen. I was in the dress Ryou had picked out for me. I stared at myself in the mirror for a minute when I heard Ryou knocking on the door.

"Ichigo, get out here! We need to leave or we will be late!"

I sighed as I walked to the door and opened it.

"It's about ti-" he started.

He stopped in mid-sentence as he looked at me and I felt my face turn red for the millionth time that day.

"Does it look bad?" I asked.

"You look beautiful," Ryou whispered.

I felt my face get hotter as I heard what Ryou. As we stood in the hallway, not looking each other, I heard someone cough. I looked around saw Keiichiro standing by the door. He had an amused look on his face, as he watched as be awkward around each other.

"Ryou, the car is here. It's time to go."

"Right. Come on, Ichigo," Ryou said, turning his back on me.

I followed Ryou out to the car and got in. Ryou and Keiichiro followed after me. I looked over at Ryou and was surprised by how good he looked in a black suit. Keiichiro looked just as good. As we started to head toward the unknown party (it was unknown to me anyways), Ryou turned to look at me.

"Before we arrive, I do have some rules for you to follow. You are to listen to everything I say. You are not to back talk me and you are to do the request. You are also not allowed to talk to anyone unless I am present. This is a birthday party for one of my dad's old colleagues, so this is a very important. Do you understand?"

"I understand, Ryou."

The rest of the drive was very quiet. Keiichiro and Ryou had a couple small conversations, but I stayed quiet. I was thinking about what type of birthday party it was. It was obviously formal, but I had never been to a formal birthday party before and I was growing nervous.

After awhile, I saw a huge mansion on a hill. As we drew closer to the mansion, I started to feel excited, but I was still nervous. When we finally reached the mansion, Keiichiro and Ryou got out first, then Ryou helped me out of the car, like a gentleman. I was a little surprised, then I remembered that I was his date for the evening.

As we walked into the mansion, I could feel all sorts of eyes on me. As I looked around, I noticed that a lot of the old, married men were watching me, which creeped me out to no end. During the party, I rarely left Ryou's side. The only time I left was to use the restroom. I had a lot of guys ask me to dance, but I declined since I was Ryou's date. Ryou and I did dance quite a bit, and the time I was dancing with him made me so happy. It was almost like we were the only two people in the whole world. Toward the end of the party, I left Ryou's side and went outside for some air. Some young guy, who had to have been in his late twenty's followed me outside. We stood outside and talked for a few minutes before Ryou came outside. He grabbed me by the arm and pulled me aside, away from the guy I was talking.

"What did I say, Ichigo?" he asked. "I told you not to talk to anyone unless I was around. A lot of the men here are shady!"

"I'm sorry, Ryou! But, I didn't see anything wrong with him. He seemed nice," I argued.

"We're leaving. Now," Ryou said.

He grabbed my hand and led me out of the mansion, Keiichiro following us, looking confused. The drive home was very awkward and quiet. I wanted to say something to Ryou, but every time I looked at him, I couldn't say anything.

When we got back to the café, I went into the locker room and put my regular clothes back on and I folded up the dress neatly and placed it in my bag. I pushed open the door and saw Ryou leaning against the wall, apparently waiting for me. I walked past him, but he grabbed my arm and held me back.

"Ichigo, I'm sorry for freaking out at the party the way I did," he said.

"It's okay, Ryou. I understand that you were worried about me."

"It was much more than that. When I saw that guy talk to you, I got really jealous," Ryou said, running his hand through his hair.

"He wasn't my type anyways. I wasn't attracted to him. Besides, there is someone I'm already in love with," I said, turning to look at him.

"Oh? Really? Who is it? Someone I know?"

As his sapphire blue eyes studied my face, I felt my face turn red. It was now or never. I took a deep breath.

"It's you, Ryou," I said. "I love you."

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><p>AN: Well what did you think? I did do something a bit different and I had Ichigo confess her love first. If you have read my other stories, you know that Ryou usually confesses to Ichigo first. But, like I said, I wanted to do something different. I'm sorry to leave it at a cliffhanger. But, you will have to wait until the New Year before you find out Ryou's reaction. The way things are looking now, the lemon may show up in the next few chapters. I haven't decided which chapter though. Well, as always, read and review. Constructive criticism is welcome, but please no flames. Once again, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Hello all! Here is chapter four of _Smile for Me_. I am sorry it took it so long to get it done. I have been fighting writer's block and lack of motivation. I have been playing a lot of _Dragon Age: Origins _and _Final Fantasy XIII_. I can't believe January is almost over. I hope 2012 will be better to me. I lost the job I had, so I am looking for a new job now. I need a new computer, since the laptop I have now is a little old. I've had it for nearly six years and everything on has almost stopped working. Anyways, enjoy chapter four!

Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew._ Mia Ikumi and Reiko Yoshida do. If I owned it, it would have been like my story.

WARNING: This chapter contains some strong language and a near rape scene.

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter Four<span>

"It's you, Ryou," I said. "I love you."

Ryou just stood there and looked at me, his mouth half open. Then, to my surprise he started laughing. He was bent over, clutching his side. I was so shocked I didn't know what to say. Why was he laughing? Did I say something funny?

After a few minutes, he stopped and looked up at me, tears in his eyes and his face slightly pink from laughing.

"That was great, Ichigo. Did you say that to get back at me?"

I couldn't believe my ears. Did he just ask me what I think he did? How did he think I could lie about something like that?

"You...you don't believe me?" I asked.

He tilted his head to the side and gave me a confused look.

"What are you talking about?" he asked. "You aren't serious are you?"

I felt the familiar burning of tears in the corners of my eyes and I turned my back on him.

"You're right," I said, "I was just joking with you."

I started to walk away when Ryou grabbed my arm.

"Ichigo, what's wrong? Did I say something wrong?" he asked, slightly concerned.

"No. It's nothing," I said, desperately holding my tears back.

"Ichigo, I know you well enough to tell that you are upset about something. Now, tell me what's wrong."

I turned to look at him with tears shining in my eyes, and as I looked into his concerned face, I couldn't hold them back anymore.

"I told you how I felt about you and you laughed at me! You treated it like it was a joke! I was serious, Ryou. I truly love you!"

His grip on my arm went slack and I pulled my arm away. Without looking back at him, I pushed the back door open and went out into the night. So many thoughts were going through my mind. I was still slightly shocked that he thought I was joking about loving him. How thick could he get? As I walked home, I was lost in thought that I didn't notice the group of men in front of me.

"Hey, look what we have here," one of the them said. "Isn't it past your bedtime?"

I stopped and narrowed my eyes. Great. This was the last thing I needed. I could tell most of the guys were drunk. The drunken ones were stumbling around and slurring, but I knew drunken men could be just as dangerous as sober men. I took a step back and found my way blocked by some of the guys. I wasn't sure when they had surrounded me. All I knew was that I was afraid. I was no longer a Mew Mew. My power had disappeared when I had no more use for it. I really wish I had my power at this point. It would help me get out of this mess.

"Wow, this one is young! It's been awhile since we had a young girl," another guy said.

At that point, I knew I was in trouble. I had this horrible feeling that if I didn't get away, I was going to be raped, and that was the last thing I wanted to happen. I scanned the group that had me surrounded. I was looking for a way out and I spotted it. It was a small space between two men. I dashed toward the spot before the men knew what happened. I didn't make it far when one of the guys grabbed my arm. I tried to scream, but he placed a hand over my mouth to keep me quiet. I could feel tears starting to well up in my eyes again. I struggled, but they were much stronger and they pulled me into an alley.

I was scared. I wanted to get away from them. Far, far away. I closed my eyes, hoping to block out everything. I didn't want to feel anything; part of me hoped they would knock me out, that way I wouldn't have to feel anything or see anything.

I was pushed up against the wall roughly and I was vaguely aware that my bag was taken away from me and thrown against the opposite wall. I could feel the tears run down as my face as I tried to struggle away from my captors. I could feel them touch me and smell the alcohol on their breath. In my mind, I kept yelling for someone to come and save me. I wanted _Ryou _to come save me. But, as far as I knew, he was back at the cafe, probably still shocked from my confession. I kept thinking about Ryou. I wanted to think about his golden hair, his sapphire blue eyes and his smile. I wanted to think about anything to keep me from thinking about the hand that was sliding up my thigh and up under my skirt. I knew it was going to happen, and there was nothing that could stop it from happening. Nothing except for...

"ICHIGO!" a male voice yelled.

My eyes snapped open and I saw a golden haired boy, no man, trying desperately to reach me. I felt my heart soar when I saw him. He had come to save me, just like I was hoping he would. When I saw Ryou, I struggled against my captor. I wanted to run to his arms. I wanted Ryou to hold me and comfort me.

Ryou grabbed one of the men and punched him in the face, knocking him out. There were four other men, excluding the one holding me. They jumped on Ryou and forced him to the ground. The man holding me laughed at Ryou and I aimed a kick at his shin, which proved to piss him off even more. The hand that had been creeping up my skirt came up and wrapped itself around my neck.

"You little bitch," he whispered. "We are going to fuck up your friend, then we will take care of you."

He continued to apply pressure to my neck and I was gasping for breath. Then, I noticed the pressure was easing on my neck and that's when I saw the guy was distracted. There was a new body that had joined the fray. The person was helping Ryou. From what I could tell in the darkness of the alley, Ryou wasn't hurt very badly. I watched as the new figure pulled the men off and Ryou and took care of them as Ryou slowly stalked toward me and the drunken guy holding me.

"Let her go," he whispered, barely audible over the fight raging behind him.

"Why should I? She stumbled into our territory. We want her for our own," the guy said.

In a flash, Ryou had the guy off me and pushed up against the opposite wall.

This is for tormenting Ichigo," he said.

He bashed the guys head against the wall and the guy slid down the wall, unconscious. Ryou went back and helped the figure. As I watched the last of the fight, I slid down the wall. I was almost raped and I was glad Ryou had come to save me. After all the men were unconscious, Ryou came back to me and helped me stand up. I was so in shock and I wasn't able to say anything. He looked at me, then wrapped me into a tight hugged.

"I am so glad you are okay," he said.

"Ryou," I managed, "I am so happy to see you. I hoped you would come to save me."

"It's okay now. Keiichiro is going to call the police. I'm here with you."

I buried my face in his chest and cried. I was so happy that Ryou had come to save me. Now, I felt safe.

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><p>AN:Well, what did you think? I think I could have done better to be honest. About halfway through, I lost the motivation to write this. I took a break after I wrote the first three chapters and my Christmas story, so it was a bit of a challenge to get back to it. I do have the lemon planned for chapter six, but that could change, so place close attention to my author's notes, because that will be where I will announce what chapter the lemon will be in. Well, read and review. Remember, constructive criticism is welcome, but please no flames!


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Hello everyone! Smurf2005 has finally got a new chapter out! It took me over two months to finish it. Sorry. I have been working a lot and I don't have any days off or time to myself. I am stressed beyond belief. I have been getting really bad headaches and I think it is from stress. I get texts all the time asking to cover someone's shift. And of course, like an idiot, I do it. *sigh* Anyways, I got a new laptop! I am so happy! I have been trying to get one for over a year, and I finally got it! It's awesome! :D I will a message for you at the end of the chapter, so please read it! Enjoy chapter five!

Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew._ Ikumi Mia and Yoshida Reiko own it. If I owned it, I can guarantee you that this series would be rated "M".

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter Five<span>

The next morning, I woke up in a strange room. I looked around the room and all I could see was a wardrobe, a dresser, the bed I was currently sitting in, and two doors. I looked around the room and noticed that it was similar to Ryou's room. The walls were the same white color, and the bed was similar. I went to the door I thought led to the hallway and opened it.

As I took in the interior of the hallway, I realized that I was in Cafe Mew Mew. I was trying to remember how I ended up in the Cafe, when it all came back to me. I had gone to a party as Ryou's date, and after I confessed my love to him, I started home. On my way home, I encountered some drunken men and I was almost raped. That's when Ryou and Keiichirou saved me. I was very grateful to them.

Then I remembered that I was questioned by the police, and Ryou said that I should stay with him at the cafe for the night. I never did say anything about it, but I did feel safer when he was around. I closed the door to my room quietly and walked over to the window. I looked out the curtained window and saw that the sun had just risen. I glanced at my watch and noticed that it was seven in the morning. After what happened, I was surprised I was able to sleep at all. I turned from the window and headed toward the other door in the room.

I opened the door and saw that it was a bathroom. I needed to take a shower. I stripped off my clothes, turned the water on and stepped into the shower. As the warm water ran over my body, I felt the tension melt away. The shampoo and conditioner smelled like lavender. It wasn't what I normally used, but I liked the smell. The same held true for the body wash. After I was done with my shower, I wrapped a towel around my head and around my body. I went into my room and sat down on the bed. As I sat there, I remembered that I didn't have any clean clothes. I was supposed to work today and I didn't have my uniform either.

I was cursing myself when there was a knock on my door. Before I could hide myself, the door opened and Ryou came into the room with a bag.

"Hey, Ichigo. I went over to your house and picked up your uniform and a change of clo-"

Ryou stopped before he could finish the sentence. He had just spotted me, wearing nothing but a towel. His face turned red and at the same time, my face turned red as well. We stood there and stared at each other for a few minutes, before I turned my back on him and started to walk back toward the bathroom, without saying a word to him. Before I knew it, Ryou had me pushed against the wall.

He had grabbed me by the arm, and pinned me against the wall. I could feel the heat from his body as he pressed against me. I sought out his sapphire blue eyes and saw that they were clouded with lust. I was filled with both fear and anticipation.

Ryou raised his hand and gently cupped my cheek. I felt my face burn with a blush and Ryou moved closer to me. I closed my eyes in anticipation, waiting to see what he would do. That's when I felt his lips brush against mine. It was a short brief kiss. His lips lingered on mine for a second, but it felt like an eternity. But every second that passed, I loved it.

He pulled back from me, and as I opened my eyes to look into his blue eyes, I saw something like regret lingering in them.

"I'm sorry for kissing you. I didn't mean for it to happen. Make sure you change into your uniform. The cafe will be opening soon," he said.

He placed the bag on the dresser and left the room quickly. As soon as the door closed, I slid down the wall and sat there for a few minutes. I didn't know what to think about the kiss he had given me. Did that mean that he loved me? If it did, then why did he look like he regretted it?

I sat on the floor for a few minutes, thinking about Ryou. Before too long, I got up from my spot on the floor and started to get dressed for work. Work was going to start soon and I needed to be ready for it.

As I walked downstairs, I saw Mint and Lettuce talking. Lettuce gave me a look that could kill and stalked off. Mint was smirking as I drew near. Damn her and that smile.

"So, you stayed the night. What happened last night?" she asked, her damned smirk still in place.

The smile on her face disappeared when she saw the look on my face. I took a deep breath and told her the story of what happened. I told her about the party, I told her about how I confessed to Ryou, and I told her about almost getting raped. Mint was shocked, and that was understandable. Then I told her about Ryou coming to save me, and she smirked again. What was with her and that smirk?

"Ryou coming to save you means that he must love you, right?" Mint said.

"I don't think so," I said. "Just because he saved me doesn't mean that he loves me. I'm sure he would do the same for all of you."

"You may be right, but you are the only one he would let spend the night in the café," Mint said, walking away from me.

I wasn't quite sure on what she meant. What did that mean? If the girls were in trouble, and Ryou saved them, he would let them stay in the café, right? I groaned as I walked out into the café. Customers were starting to come in, and I knew it was going to be a long, busy day.

As the day passed, I would catch glances of Ryou. He was watching me, and it was unnerving me. His gaze was so intense, and I didn't know why he was so fixated on me. I hoped that it had nothing to do with what happened this morning in the spare room. Lettuce seemed to notice, and she was glaring at me all day.

By the end of the day, I was very agitated. I was agitated because of Ryou staring at me and Lettuce giving me death glares. After the café close, I started to head upstairs to the room that I used earlier, when Lettuce stopped me.

"So, you spent the night, huh, Ichigo?" she said.

I closed my eyes and groaned inwardly. I _did not_ want to deal with her at this point. I opened my eyes and turned around to face her.

"Yes, I did. Do you have a problem with that?" I asked.

"Actually, yes, I do have a problem with that. Why are you the one he cares about? I have loved him all these years, but you decide to tell him that you love him and all of a sudden, you get all his attention. Who the hell do you think you are?" Lettuce said.

I glared at her. My head was aching and all I wanted to do was go home and sleep.

"I am not taking all his attention," I replied, really irritated at this point. "You're just jealous."

"Oh come off it, Ichigo. You know Ryou loves you," Lettuce said, bitterness lacing her voice.

At that point, I froze. I had no idea what she was talking about. Ryou in love with me? That had to have been a lie. There was no way he was in love with me. He had practically rejected me last night when I told him how I felt about him.

"You're lying," I automatically said.

"No, she's telling the truth," a voice said, off to the right. "I am in love with you."

I turned my head slightly and saw that Ryou was leaning against the wall. I glanced at Lettuce and I saw that she was holding back tears.

"No. That can't be right! You rejected me last night! I told you I love you and you laughed at me! There is no way I am going to believe you now!"

I turned my back on the pair and ran upstairs to the room I was using the night before and grabbed my stuff. I ran back downstairs and noted that Ryou was still leaning against the wall where I left him, but Lettuce was gone. I started to walk away when he grabbed my arm.

"Ichigo, please wait. Let me explain," Ryou said.

I stopped and turned to look at him.

"Yes, please do! Please explain how when I told you I loved you, you laughed at me, but when Lettuce tells me you love me, you admit it!"

Ryou sighed and ran his free hand through his hair.

"I regret laughing at you. I didn't want to get my hopes up. I was thinking that you were joking with me, trying to get back at me for the way I acted at the party last night."

"I don't joke about stuff like that, Ryou. You hurt me, and frankly, I don't think anything will change now. I think I need to evaluate my feelings. I'll see you tomorrow," I said.

I pulled my arm out of his grip and turned my back on him, all the while trying to hold my tears back.

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><p>AN: I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Now, I need some help. I have no experience in the world of… sex, so I am looking for first time experiences. I am not trying to be a pervert. This is the first time I am writing a lemon in first person view and I have no idea where to start. I want to be able to get everything right and I don't want to screw it up and receive reviews like "OMG!11! Tht waz lyke so ew! U don knw nythig abot sex!1111one!111!" or something like that. Lol. You don't have to help me on this and I won't use your experience in my story. I just need to know how it felt and your thoughts and feelings. I do ask that if you choose to help me, please PM it to me. I don't want any of you to feel uncomfortable. I will wait until the end of May. If I don't get any PMs, I will go ahead and write it from first person view, and if I screw it up, please don't blame me. Anyways, please read and review. Remember constructive criticism is welcome, but please no flames.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Hello everyone! Smurf is back! I finally finished chapter 6. This was a hard chapter to write. I do hope I did a good job on it. I do have a boyfriend now, but, that doesn't help with this story. We have been together for about a month and a half. Not ready for anything like that, yet. Heh. Anyways, I was re-reading all the reviews I got for this story, and that encouraged me to keep going. So, thank you! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not _Tokyo Mew Mew. Tokyo Mew Mew _is owned by Ikumi Mia and Yoshida Reiko.

WARNING: This chapter contains sexual contact between two characters. If you are not a fan of lemons, please do not read this chapter. I have warned you.

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter Six<span>

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><p>The walk home seemed much longer than normal. I knew I needed to think about my feelings. I now knew how Ryou felt about me, but how could I be sure that was how he really felt? He did break my heart after all. But then again, I did understand why he acted the way he did. I knew he didn't want to get his hopes up and risk getting hurt. He wasn't the one who got hurt though. I was the one who was nursing a broken heart.<p>

I didn't feel like going home, so I wandered around Tokyo for a few hours. I honestly didn't know how to feel. I didn't know how I was going to cope with this. Stupid Ryou! I let out an irritated growl, which got me some weird looks from random passers-by. I walked to a nearby park and sat on a bench. I found myself wondering if what he said was true. I didn't know if I could believe him. But the kiss we shared kept popping into my mind. That must have been his real feelings coming through.

I stood up and started to walk back to the café. I had some things I needed to discuss with Ryou. The kiss was first on my mind. I didn't know what to think about the kiss. But, the fact that nothing was said about it, made me wonder how he actually felt about it, and me for that matter.

I arrived at the café and walked inside. It was very quiet and I found myself wondering where Ryou and Keiichirou were. I took a few steps into the café and looked around. I headed toward the back of the café, vaguely thinking that I would check the kitchen.

When I reached the kitchen, I didn't see anyone. I headed downstairs to the basement and saw that no one was in there either. This was strange. There was usually always someone here at the café. I wandered upstairs to see if I could find Ryou or Keiichirou. It was really quiet upstairs, too.

I was starting to feel uneasy now. I walked down the hall to Keiichirou's room and knocked on his door. When there was no answer I had no choice but to go to Ryou's room. After all, he was the one I came to see. I walked the short distance to his room and knocked on the door. I waited for a few minutes, and when I didn't get a response, I opened the door and glanced inside. He wasn't anywhere to be seen. I walked inside and looked around his room. It looked the same as always, though he had a few more pictures hung up on the walls.

As I walked further into the room, I heard the water running in the bathroom. I vaugely thought that Ryou was in the bathroom, taking a shower. I walked over to his bed and sat down. I stared at the pictures on the wall, and saw that they were of us and the café. I was surprised to see that a few were of me. It looked like he kept pictures of me, just like I kept pictures of him. But, there was one I could not stop looking at. We were having a birthday party for Keiichirou, and I was talking with Ryou. There was a huge smile on my face and his. It looked like we were a couple in that picture.

I was so fixated on that picture that I didn't hear the water turn off, and then the door opening.

"What the hell?" a startled voice said from the bathroom.

I jumped and turned around to see Ryou, still damp from his shower, and a towel wrapped around his waist. His face had started to turn red and I could feel my own face turn red. I opened my mouth to say something, but nothing would come out. I couldn't say anything. There had been a lot of times I had seen him without his shirt on, but this time, it seemed different.

It seemed like there was sexual tension in the air. Maybe it was the kiss we shared earlier or maybe it was from when Ryou told me that he loved me. I could feel the sexual tension in the air, and I wanted to leave the room. I needed to get away before something happened. Something I knew I would regret. I took a couple steps toward the door when I found my way blocked by Ryou.

I couldn't look into his eyes. I was afraid what I would see. I wouldn't blame him if I saw hate and disgust in them. But I knew that I wouldn't see those emotions. I knew I may see lust, and I was afraid to see it.

"Ichigo, look at me," he said.

I was so surprised by his tone that I looked at him. His voice seemed to have dropped an octave. It was deeper than usual and it startled me. I found myself staring into his sapphire blue eyes. My heart started to beat faster when I saw the look in his eyes. It was lust, just like I knew I would see.

"Ryou," I whispered.

There were so many things that I wanted to say and went unsaid. At that moment, Ryou claimed my lips with his. He was kissing me hungrily and I didn't know what to do except kiss him back. His lips moved from mine and kissed along my jawline. My skin seemed to burn where he kissed me. I could feel the heat rise in my body and I knew what I wanted. I wanted Ryou. I wanted all of him. I wanted all I could get from him.

As his lips moved to my neck, I knew what was coming and I didn't want him to stop. I moved my head slightly to give him better access to my neck, and I could feel him nip and lick my neck. I loved the sensation and a low moan escaped my mouth before I could stop it.

Ryou took that as a sign to continue, and his kisses went from my neck back to my lips. I loved the feel of his lips on mine. I craved his kisses. I didn't want them to stop. We had somehow moved to the wall, and he had me pressed against it. His body, still slightly damp, was pressed against mine, and I could feel the moisture from his body slowly soak into my clothing.

All of a sudden, my clothing was feeling a little too restricting. I wanted to take them off. I wanted to feel his naked body against mine. I was about to break the kiss, when Ryou seemed to sense what I was thinking and broke the kiss to look at me.

"Ichigo," he whispered.

That was all that took to drive me over the edge. I leaned in and kissed him, this time I was taking the initiative, and I knew what I wanted. I pushed him away from my body slightly, and he took the hint. He guided me over to his bed, without breaking the kiss, and he gently pulled me down on top of him. That's when I could feel his hard member pressing against me. My pulse quickened when I thought about how big it was. Was it able to fit inside me? But, Ryou's lips had found their way to my neck, and that thought was momentarily thrown from my mind. All I could think about was how good his lips felt on my body. He had started to undo the top of my café uniform and I hardly noticed. All I could think about was that his hands were on me. They were everywhere. They were on my neck, they were on my breasts, and they were on every inch of my body.

It felt good, and a moan escaped my lips again. I could feel his lips curl into a smile against my neck. He nipped at my collarbone, and then he kissed his way over to the other side of my neck. He spent some time biting and licking my neck, before he moved back to the collarbone and started to kiss down my body. By now he had my café uniform opened and he was gently working it off. It was discarded on the floor rather quickly.

He took a moment to look at me. I knew my face was red, and it was turning redder with the way he looked at me. He leaned down and kissed me again. He broke the kiss and started to kiss my chest. He kissed the valley between my breasts before he started to kiss my nipples through the rough fabric of my bra. I couldn't help it. A rather loud moan emerged from my mouth, and once again, I felt his lips curl into a smirk.

He kissed me on the lips again, and his hands were working on my bra clasp. He unclasped my bra and the straps started to slip down my shoulders. I brought my hands up to my breasts, and tried to keep my bra from revealing my breasts. I was a little embarrassed to let him see them. I always wondered if maybe he liked big boobs, and mine weren't that big.

He gently moved my arms and my bra slipped off my frame. Ryou took a few moments to gaze at my breasts before he claimed my lips again. I felt his hands fondle my breasts and I couldn't suppress a moan, though it was muffled by his lips. He took no time in breaking the kiss and he leaned down to kiss each one of my breasts.

Ryou started to suck gently on my right nipple, while he used his hand to fondle my left breast. I could feel him suck, and bite down gently before he would use his tongue to flick my nipple back and forth. The feeling of his mouth on my nipple made me moan some more and I was arching my back, trying to feel more of him. He moved over to my other breast and gave it the same treatment. I felt like I was about to break at any moment; the pleasure was so overwhelming. Ryou stopped just for a moment, so I could lie down on the bed. He got on top of me and started to kiss and fondle my breasts again.

I had started to beg for more and asking him not to stop. I didn't want him to stop. I wanted to feel more of him, see more of him, and taste more of him. There was a part of me, knowing that in all the years I knew Ryou, this was eventually going to happen. I knew that somewhere down the road, this was going to happen, and here I was in Ryou's bed about to make love with him.

As he continued to play with my boobs, his free hand slid down my body to the hem of my skirt. He slowly pulled it up around my waist, and his hand dipped into my panties. His fingers found the bundle of nerves and started to rub it. It was a little painful at first, since I was so sensitive. But, after a while, it started to feel good. My back arched upward and his slid his fingers down until they entered me.

He used one finger at first. Then, he slid in another finger. It was a little painful, since I was still a virgin. Ryou slid his fingers in and out of me, while still fondling my breasts. I was feeling something I had never felt before. It started in the pit of my stomach and it seemed to build in intensity. Ryou came up from my boobs and kissed me. His fingers were still moving inside me and my moans were being muffled by the kisses Ryou bestowed upon my lips. The pleasure had reached its peak when Ryou stopped. I looked up at him, disappointed, and I was surprised to see a grin on his face.

"Enjoying it, Ichigo?" he asked.

I couldn't say anything to him. I felt my face turn beet red and I felt embarrassed. He chuckled and placed a feather light kiss between my eyes.

"Don't worry, Ichigo," I heard him whisper. "I will be gentle with you."

What? What did he mean by that? Gentle? My mind must have been running slow, because I had no idea what he meant. I should have known, since I was laying here in his bed, almost completely naked, and Ryou hovering over me in nothing but a towel and an erection.

"What's going to happen now," I said, before I could stop myself.

I knew I probably sounded childish to him. But, with the position I was in, I had no idea what was going to happen. My brain was still running slow. Then, it hit me. Ryou wanted to have sex with me. Did I want him to? Did I want him to take the only thing that was precious to me? He had stolen my innocence when I was thirteen, when he made me and the other girls into Mew Mews. But, my virginity was the only precious thing I had left. He was looking at me confused, like he had no idea on what I meant.

"I was going to make love to you," he said, slowly. "Do you not want to?"

No, I did want him to. I wanted to be closer to him than I have ever been in my life. I felt that maybe having sex with Ryou was the way to go. There were some cases where sex strengthened the relationship, and then there were times where sex destroyed it. But, what the hell was I thinking? Ryou and I didn't have a relationship. Perhaps he was going to use me as a booty call, and I found myself thinking that I would be okay with that. Just being with him was enough for me. I closed my eyes for a few minutes and took a deep breath. Then, I opened them and stared into his sapphire blue eyes and small smile played on my lips.

"I want you, Ryou," I said, my voice just above a whisper.

He was searching my face, to make sure I was really okay with it. Yes, I was afraid, since I had heard stories about how it hurt. I thought back to when he had his fingers in me. He had used two fingers on me, and it was a little painful at first, but the pleasure was amazing after I got used to it.

"Don't worry, Ichigo," I heard him whisper. "I won't do anything to hurt you. I promise I will be gentle."

I nodded my head to show him that was listening. The last pieces of the offending clothing were tossed carelessly on the floor. I was now completely naked in front of Ryou, and he was the same way. I glanced down at his erection and I felt my face turn red and I gulped. It was so _big_. I was afraid it would hurt a lot. As I thought about that, I started to shiver. He smoothed back my hair and placed a gentle kiss on my lips, but I could feel him positioning himself above me. He rubbed the tip of his member against my slit and started to slide in slowly. I winced in pain. I could feel him stretching me and it was a little painful at first. But, he was so gentle. He stopped at my maidenhood and looked at me. I could that he was trying to contain himself.

"Ryou," I whispered, "it's okay."

He leaned down and kissed me on the lips, and then he thrust into me. My cry of pain was muffled by his lips. I was shaking uncontrollably, and Ryou had his arms wrapped around me. He pulled away from me and searched my face.

"Ichigo, I am sorry it hurts. I promise it won't hurt for long."

I nodded and he took it for the sign to start moving. It was very painful at first, but soon, I started to feel pleasure well up inside me. It didn't hurt so much anymore. The feeling was so intense. It filled my stomach and rose up into my heart. I let out a moan, and Ryou started to move faster. I soon started to rise up to meet his thrusts, and I started to buck my own hips, trying to achieve the release I so desperately wanted. I was feeling what I felt when his fingers were in me, and I wanted to know what was over the wave of pleasure I was feeling.

Ryou was moaning my name. And I was moaning his as well. I was getting closer and closer to my peak, and then finally, I burst. I cried out his name, and I heard him grunt out my name, and he released himself in me. He collapsed on me, and I could feel how sweaty he was. That was when I realized I was sweaty as well.

He raised his head and looked at me, a small smile on his lips. Seeing the smile on his lips made me smile as well. He leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on my lips. He raised his head to look at me again, and this time, there was a serious look on his face.

"Ichigo," he said, "I really do love you. I want you to be mine. Will you please be my girlfriend?"

I was stunned at first. Ryou was being completely serious, which was rare. I loved Ryou, too. And my first instinct was telling me to deny him, just the way he had denied me earlier. But, that wasn't the words that came out of my mouth.

"Yes, I will be your girlfriend."

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><p>AN: Whoa. That was a long chapter, huh? I have been working on this for a few months now, and every time I started on the sex scene, I got stuck. I was even reading other lemons, but, I still had trouble with this, probably because it was first person view. I have no problem writing lemons in third person, but this was a bit challenging for me. I do apologize if it wasn't what you were expecting. I think there a few continuity problems as well, but I did try my best. Anyways, please read and review. Remember constructive criticism is welcome, but please no flames. See you in chapter seven! :D


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Hello everyone! Smurf here with the new chapter to _Smile for Me_! I just updated last week, and here I am again! This chapter is going to be a little slow, and not a lot of dialog. And Ichigo is being obsessive over one little thing. I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew. Tokyo Mew Mew _is owned by Ikumi Mia and Yoshida Reiko.

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter Seven<span>

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><p>It had been a month since Ryou and I had started to date. Nothing seemed to have changed between us. He was a little gentler with me, but he was still a slave-driver. There will be times when I would stay the night with him, and of course, we would have sex. But, it seemed like that's all he wanted from me. He would even get me in the locker room between breaks. And he would always tell me afterwards that he loved me.<p>

This morning, however, I was at home. And I had a big problem. It was the end of the month, and I hadn't had my period, yet. I was worried, since I had never missed a period before. I was wondering what could be the problem. The first thought that popped into my mind was that I was pregnant. That was a possibility, since the last time I had my period was about a week before I slept with Ryou that first time. That as the only time we had sex without protection. And I was always taught that it takes one time to get pregnant.

Since, I had the day off, I walked to the nearest drug store, wearing a hat and sunglasses to hide some of my face. I didn't want anyone to notice me. It would be bad if it got back to my parents that I was spotted buying a pregnancy test.

I managed to buy the pregnancy test without anyone noticing that it was me. When I got home, I opened the test and followed the directions. After waiting for a few minutes, I checked the test, and it was positive.

I was stunned to say the least. I never really thought I would be a mother this quick. And we had only been together for a month. I didn't know how I was going to tell Ryou. I couldn't go up to him and say "hey, I am going to have your baby!" Somehow, I didn't think that would work. The one thing I knew I needed to do was make an appointment with a doctor, just to be sure.

Over the next month or so, I had seen a doctor, who had informed that I was indeed pregnant, and new symptoms had shown up. As days passed, I became distant from Ryou, and I know he was confused and hurt, but I couldn't tell him I was pregnant. There was a part of me that knew he would be excited to be a father. After all, he had lost his parents when he was still young, and it was just him and Keiichirou for the longest time. But, there was also a part of me that was afraid he would reject me and the child, maybe even try to claim that the child wasn't his. I knew the latter would never happen. That didn't mean I was going to tell him.

The girls seemed to know that something was up, since I hadn't told them yet. Lettuce seemed to be more vindictive than usual, and it wasn't helping my stress level. As the days continued to pass, I still hadn't told Ryou, and I knew I had to do something soon, since I was going to start showing. I had told my parents that I was pregnant, and they were a little disappointed that I wasn't married, but they were thrilled to be grandparents. My mom and dad were talking about how they were going to convert one of the spare bedrooms into a nursery, and I felt panic take hold of me.

I didn't know if I was ready to be a parent at all. I was afraid that I would do something to screw it up, and I still wasn't sure how Ryou would react to my being pregnant with his child. But, I was starting to get desperate. I needed to do something and fast. I was thinking of quitting my job, but, since Ryou and I were dating, he would come see me, and eventually find out that I was pregnant.

I knew I shouldn't be this worried about it. After all, he claimed that he loved me. And I loved him, too. There was no reason why I should be worried about telling him about something like this. I was starting to see my pregnancy as a miracle. But, fear was taking over, and I decided that I had to quit work, and break up with Ryou. So, after my shift, I met him in his office, and he seemed very concerned.

"Ichigo, what's wrong?" he asked.

"I'm quitting, Ryou," I said, after a couple of moments of silence.

"What? Why are you quitting? What are you saying?"

"I-I just have some things I need to take care of," I said, stammering.

He looked at me with his piercing sapphire eyes. It was almost like he knew something was up.

"Ichigo, are you okay? Is there something you need to tell me?"

I looked into his eyes, and for one second, I was going to tell him. I wanted to tell him about the life that was growing inside. I wanted to tell him that I was going to have a baby; his baby. But no words would come out. All I could do was shake my head.

"I'm moving," I heard myself say.

"Eh? What do you mean, Ichigo?" Ryou asked, rather startled. "What do you mean 'you're moving'?"

In reality, that wasn't what I wanted to say. I wanted to stay here in Tokyo with him and all my friends, but I thought that the only thing I could have done was leave.

"Since I am leaving," I said, "I think we should break up."

I wasn't looking at him. I was looking everywhere but at him. I couldn't believe I was saying this. I never thought in a million years that I would break up with Ryou. I never thought I would start dating him either.

Ryou got up from his chair and came around the desk to face me.

"Look at me," I heard him say.

I wouldn't look him. I couldn't look at him. I didn't want to see the pain I knew I caused. I didn't want to have to see the damage I had done. But, I did. I looked up into those eyes I loved so much, and saw that they were filled with tears. I never thought I would see Ryou cry.

"Ichigo, answer me. Why are you moving? Don't you love me?"

I was in a panic now. Yes, of course I loved him! How could I not? He was the only thing that made me happy. He was the one I wanted to be with for the rest of my life. I opened my mouth to say what I felt.

"No, I don't love you," I said.

That was the one line I knew I would regret for the rest of my life.

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><p>AN: So, what did you think about this chapter? I know I am probably depressing a lot of you and I am sorry! But this was a chapter I had to write! I am so sorry! Please don't hate me! I am pleased to announce that we are reaching the climax of my story! There are only a few chapters left. I am estimating that there will be between three to six more chapters. Please continue to support me. Anyways, please read and review, remember, I welcome constructive criticism, but please, no flames. See you in the next chapter!


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Hello all! Smurf posting the new chapter to _Smile for Me_. Believe it or not, but there aren't many chapters left. We have reached the beginning of the climax of the story. My boyfriend broke up with me last week, so this is a good distraction. Well, enjoy chapter eight!

Disclaimer: I do not _Tokyo Mew Mew. Tokyo Mew Mew _is owned by Ikumi Mia and Yoshida Reiko. If I owned it, well… let's not go there.

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter Eight<span>

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><p>The look on Ryou's face broke my heart. I said something I regretted, but I couldn't back out now. I quickly left his office, and he didn't try to call me back. I told the girls I was quitting and moving away, and amid the protests, I left them. I didn't say anything else. I ignored the calls and texts I was getting. Everybody tried to contact me except Ryou and Lettuce. I didn't expect Lettuce to contact me, and after the way I hurt Ryou, I would be surprised if he did.<p>

I told my parents that I was moving, they were not very happy with that decision, but I told them I wanted to do this on my own. They respected it, and they did try to convince me to stay. My mom even said she would come stay with me after my baby was.

I decided that I was going to move to Wakkanai in Hokkaido Prefecture. I wouldn't be able to reach Hokkaido with the Shinkansen, so I decided to take the slower sleeper train to Sapporo, and then take another train from Sapporo to Wakkanai.

I helped my mom and dad pack most of my stuff into boxes. My bed and dresser was going to stay here but all my clothes and certain possessions were going with me. They would pay to have it shipped it to me when I got to my new place. All I was taking on the train with me was a suitcase with some of my clothes.

I had one more doctor's appointment with my doctor in Tokyo before I was switching to a doctor in Wakkanai. The doctor said that I was about three months pregnant. It was too soon to know the gender of my baby, but I found I wanted to be surprised.

I was leaving in a few days, and I found myself needing to say goodbye to the girls, and that included Lettuce. I decided to start with her. I had called her and she agreed to meet me at a nearby café. I arrived a little early, only to find Lettuce already waiting for me. She was sitting at a table by herself, with what I assumed was a cup of tea. Ever since she had started to work at Café Mew Mew, she had developed a liking for Earl Gray tea. I liked Rose Tea. I sat down across from her. We didn't say anything while I was waiting for my tea. We were still silent for a little bit after my tea arrived.

"Why did you invite me out here, Ichigo? You know that I am upset with you because of what you did to Ryou," Lettuce said.

"Yes. I figured that. But, I have my reasons," I said.

"Do you really love him? Or were you just lying?" she asked.

I was quiet for a few minutes and I didn't answer her right away. I loved Ryou with all my heart, but after what happened, I didn't think I could say so. I felt like I had no right to say that I loved him, not after what I did to him.

"I… I do love him…." I said, trailing off.

Lettuce noticed my hesitation, and sighed.

"If you love him, then why are you leaving?"

"I have some things I need to sort out. I may come back."

Lettuce was quiet for a few minutes while she sipped her tea.

"I knew I would lose out to you in the end. Ryou has always loved you. There is no denying that. I guess I was just jealous. I have always loved him, but he loved you. It was a matter of time before you fell in love with him. Maybe you were always in love with him and you didn't know it. Who knows?"

We fell silent again and sipped our tea quietly.

"This is how we used to be. We used to be so close. I guess we let a guy in the way of our friendship," I said.

"I was trying to reach an unattainable guy. I knew he loved someone else, yet, I tried to make him love me," Lettuce said.

We talked for a little longer, and then we went our separate ways. I don't know if I will ever see her again, but I know we had resolved a lot of things. I made trips to see Pudding, Berry, and Zakuro, too. I saved Mint for last. Out of all the girls, she and I were the closest. We were the first Mew Mews. I showed up at her Mansion, and at first she wasn't going to let me in. I think she was pissed at me. After a while, she finally let me in, and while the maids went to get us something to drink, it was quiet in the parlor where we sat.

"What are you doing here, Ichigo? Shouldn't you be getting ready leave all us behind?" Mint asked.

"I'm not leaving for another couple days. I wanted to let you know when I was leaving. Hopefully you and the girls will come say goodbye to me."

"What about Ryou?" Mint asked.

"He doesn't know when I am leaving. I am not telling him," I said, crossing my arms.

"Why? Why would you do something like that? I thought you loved him!"

I had a strange sense of de ja vu. I had had the same conversation with all the other girls before this. And they had all asked me the same thing.

"I do love him; I just need time to work something out."

"What is so important that you will dump Ryou and move to the furthest city in Hokkaido?"

I almost told Mint about the baby that was growing inside me. I almost told her how scared I was of the life that Ryou and I had created. But, I couldn't tell her. She didn't need to know, just like Ryou didn't need to know about it.

"I just need time," I replied simply. "I am going to go now. I am tired. It's been a long day. I am leaving on Tuesday, at 9 am. I hope you and the girls will be there. Please do not let Ryou know. It would make it too hard to leave."

I left Mint in the parlor and walked home. My hand covered my stomach. I hoped that I wasn't making the wrong decision, but Ryou could not know.

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><p>AN: Well, what do you think? This was a little tough to write. I have a headache that will not go away. I will start on chapter nine here in the next couple days. I want to be able to post another chapter before the end of the year. So, I will be working hard. Anyways, read and review. Remember, constructive criticism is welcome, but please no flames.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Hello everyone! Smurf here with TWO new chapters of _Smile for Me_! I felt like writing on this story and before I knew it, two chapters were done! The next couple of chapters (chapter ten and eleven) will be from Ryou's point of view, so this is the last chapter from Ichigo's point of view, and she will reappear in chapter twelve. Someone had left a comment asking how Ichigo could survive without money. I figure she is the type to save up, so that was addressed in this chapter. Her father also gave her a hundred thousand yen, which is roughly 1,191.47 in US dollars. Also, for those of you wondering about this, Wakkanai is a real place in Japan. It is in the northern part of Hokkaido. Hokkaido is the big island north of the main island where Tokyo is. Wakkanai is at the very top, near Russia. Go look it up! Anyways, enjoy chapter nine!

Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew._ It is owned by Ikumi Mia and Yoshida Reiko. If I owned it, well….

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter Nine<span>

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><p>The day of my departure was upon us. I grabbed the suitcase I was taking with me and I walked downstairs. I couldn't believe I was leaving Tokyo. My mom had breakfast waiting for me and my dad was already at the table, eating. I sat down and he looked up at me.<p>

"Well, today is the day you are leaving," he said.

I nodded and didn't say anything. I didn't think I could. I picked up my chopsticks and took a bite of the rice. It didn't taste the same as usual. Probably because I knew I was leaving for good.

Mom sat down in her usual spot and started to eat her breakfast.

"Do you have everything? Do you have your bank book?" Mom asked.

Once again, I nodded, not trusting my voice. I saw my mom exchange looks with my father, and he pulled something out of his back pocket. It was an envelope, and it looked like it had a large amount of something stuffed into it.

"This is for you, Ichigo," he said, handing me the envelope.

I took the envelope and opened it. Inside was a hundred thousand yen. I looked up at my father shocked.

"Dad, I can't take this! This is too much!" I said, handing it back to him.

"I want you to take it. It will help you with buying stuff for the baby and taking care of yourself."

"But, Dad, I have my own money saved up! And I have a couple of interviews scheduled in a couple days," I said.

"No one is going to hire you right now. You are three months pregnant. They are not going to want to give you maternity leave almost immediately after they hire you. So, you will need help until you can a job after your baby is born."

I knew he was telling the truth. But a hundred thousand yen was too much.

"At least let me give half of this back. Fifty thousand is fine with me!" I said.

"Ichigo, stop arguing with your father. He wants you to take the full hundred thousand, so take it," Mom said.

I brought it my chest and held it there before I got up and put it in my purse.

"Thank you, Father," I said.

I went back to the table and sat down and ate my breakfast. Nothing else was said while we were eating. There was nothing else to say. I was leaving Tokyo, and we all knew it. After we were done eating, I helped my mom clean the table and wash the dishes one last time. As mom and I washed the dishes, she spoke.

"Ichigo, are you sure you want to do this? You can stay here so we can help you. We don't want you to move all the way to Wakkanai. We want you to stay here so we can help."

She handed me a plate and I dried it. I knew what she was trying to do. She wanted me to be here if I needed her. But, I couldn't stay. It would be too difficult to stay. The temptation to see Ryou would be overwhelming. He would also find out about this baby, and I couldn't allow it. I was still afraid that he would try to say that I had cheated on him, even though he would know that I didn't. I loved him and I hope he knew I loved him. But, I couldn't stay here. I wouldn't be able to deal with it.

"I'm sorry, Mom, but I can't stay here. This is something I need to do. I need to do this alone. If I need help, I will be sure to ask you," I said.

She nodded and didn't say anything else. She knew what I was trying to convey, and she was being respectful.

"Ichigo, can I ask why you are leaving? I don't think this has anything to do with you wanting to do this on your own. I think there is something else. Please, talk to me. Tell me what this is all about."

I didn't want to say anything to my mom. I didn't want to burden her with my insecurities. But, I found myself opening up to her. After all, we were close when I was growing up. I told her everything that I had been thinking about since I became pregnant and she listened patiently. When I finally finished, she looked at me with a slight smile on her face.

"Ichigo, despite what you are thinking about right now, Ryou loves you. No matter what happens, he will love you forever. I have watched you guys all these years, and he has loved you from the beginning. Even when you were over the moon for Masaya, he waited patiently for you. No one waits that long for someone unless he truly loved her. Ryou waited all these years for you. I know you are worried that he may reject you when he finds out about the baby, but he doesn't strike me as the type of person who would do that."

She smiled at me and pulled me into a hug. That's when Dad came into the kitchen and told us it was time to leave. He picked up my suitcase and we went to the car.

As we drove through Tokyo to the train station, everything reminded me of Ryou. All the places in Tokyo had some significance. In the distance I saw Tokyo Tower. That was where we fought the giant moth. Mint found the Mew Aqua there. Pudding found it in Tokyo Dome, Lettuce found the Mew Aqua in Tokyo Bay, Zakuro found it underground and I found it in Masaya. Everything had memories.

When we arrived at the train station, I saw all the girls there, including Lettuce. Keiichirou was there as well, but I didn't see Ryou. I was glad that Mint did not tell Ryou when I was leaving. But, then again, I was disappointed. There was a part of me that wanted him to arrive here and demand that I stayed, but I knew that would never happen.

I said my goodbyes to the group that had gathered around. Mint and Keiichirou kept looking at their watches and looking around, but I ignored them. I got on the train, and when I reached my seat, I stuck my head out the window to say goodbye. I was telling everybody that I would be okay, and I was holding my tears back. That was when I heard it.

"Ichigo!"

I looked around and I found the source of the voice. It was Ryou. There was no way I could mistake him. The tears I was holding in spilled over. My hand went out the window, and I reached toward him. I wanted to touch him one last time, but the train started to move. He was running after my hand, but there were too many people on the platform. My tears were being carried on the wind and my hair was whipping me in the face, but I still kept my hand out the window, in hopes that Ryou would grab it. The train picked up speed and he was left behind. He didn't stop running until he reached the end of the platform.

I plopped down into my seat and wept. Why did I leave? Why didn't I tell him about the baby? I knew he wouldn't abandon me, but I didn't believe it. I was insecure in my relationship with him. Now, I was out of his life forever.

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><p>AN: Well, what did you think? This was a tear jerker for me to write. I started to tear up toward the end. Poor Ichigo and Ryou. I am sorry that I am writing a story like this, but I had this idea for a while and I wanted to get it out there. I have been working on this story for over a year now, but I promise, I will finish it. I am not going to let this go unfinished. Remember, read and review! As always, constructive criticism is welcome, but please, no flames!


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Well, here is the second chapter I promised you. This chapter is a little shorter, because I couldn't keep it going. But, this chapter follows Ryou's feelings from the time Ichigo became pregnant to the time she left. And it is from Ryou's point of view. The next chapter will be like that as well. Like I said, Ichigo will come back in chapter thirteen. Anyways, enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew. Tokyo Mew Mew_ is owned by Ikumi Mia and Yoshida Reiko. If I owned it, Ryou and Ichigo would have been together.

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter Ten<span>

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><p>I made it to the platform too late. She was already on the train, and the doors were shut. She was leaning out the window, saying goodbye to the girls and her family, trying to hold back tears. I could hear her telling them that she will be okay, and that she would keep in contact. After all the years that I had known her, I knew when she was trying to keep herself together. I had seen it many times over the years. I was a few feet away. I had gotten the call last night, saying what time I had to be here. I wasn't going to come. I was just going to let her leave my life.<p>

I didn't know if I wanted to see her again. She had hurt me so much. I had given her all the love I had. I had given her my heart. The sad thing was, I thought she loved me, too. She told me she did anyways. And I believed her. All the times we slept together were great. She was so soft and so inviting, and I am glad I was her first. But, it wasn't just sex to me; it was a whole lot more than that. The first night, we made love. It was the night we became one. It was the most beautiful thing to me, and I thought she felt he same way.

But, as I am standing on this platform, I am starting to believe it was all a lie. Maybe she was just using me. Using me for sex was plausible; after all, I took her virginity. But, it didn't seem like that was what she was after. There had to be another reason.

I had noticed that she was getting irritable, and that she was hiding something from me. A part of me wondered if she was cheating on me. But, I didn't believe that. She wasn't that type of girl. She was very loyal. She had always been that way, so what was she hiding?

I never got to ask her what she was hiding. After she broke up with me and quit, I never saw her again. No matter what I did, I never saw her. I even went to her house, but she was either not there or didn't want to see me. Her parents apologized every time, and I could tell that they knew her secret.

But, after a while, I gave up. I was sick of going to house all the time. I was sick of calling her cell phone all the time. I was sick of it all. I tried to turn my heart off, saying that she was a cold heartless bitch, and that I would be better off without her. But, every time I told myself that, I felt a nagging prick in my heart. There was a part of me that was telling that I was being a jackass. There was no way I could hate her. I was lying to myself. I could feel that.

So, when I got the call, saying that I needed to be at the platform at nine in the morning, I was prepared to not go. I didn't want to see her. I was still trying to block her from my heart. I didn't want to have to see her. I knew if I did, my resolve would crumble.

On the day she was supposed to leave, I woke up early, and she was plaguing my thoughts. I still felt like something was wrong. I knew this wasn't her. She would never run away from something. She was a fighter. So, why was she giving up so easily? As I lay in my bed, I turned my head slightly, and saw a picture. It was a picture of me and her. The internal struggle started again.

I jumped up and I paced back and forth in my room, still trying to figure out what was going on in my mind. I looked at the clock. It was eight thirty. That was when I made my decision. I wasn't going to let her leave me. I was going to keep her here. I rushed out of the Café and got in my car. I sped to the station and I ran inside.

I found the platform I was looking for, and there she was; already on the train, saying goodbye to her family and friends. I was too late, but I had to try.

"Ichigo," I yelled.

Her head turned toward me, and I saw her eyes widen and fill with tears. Her small hand reached out of the window toward me, and I know what she wanted. I ran forward, pushing past people, trying to grab her hand, but I was too late. The train started to move, and it was slowly gaining speed. I ran after the train, trying to grab her hand, but the train was too fast. Her red hair was being blown into her face, and her tears were blowing on the wind. I reached the end of the platform, and just like that, the woman I loved left my life forever.

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><p>AN: Well, what did you think? This is my last chapter of the year, and I wanted to get this done as a Christmas gift to you all. I am going to take a bit of a break from writing, and I will start up again after the New Year. So, I hope you will all continue to support me! Remember, read and review. As always, constructive criticism is welcome, but please no flames. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! See you next year


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Hello everyone! Happy New Year! Smurf is here with the new chapter of the New Year! I can't believe it is already 2013, and guess what? _Smile for Me_ is almost done! Just a few more chapters to go! Ichigo will come back in the next chapter! So, first person view will switch over to her. This story will only have 14 chapters, and the climax is in the next chapter. This is where you all find out why this story is called _Smile for Me_. Anyways, enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew. Tokyo Mew Mew_ is owned by Ikumi Mia and Yoshida Reiko.

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter Eleven<span>

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><p>She was gone, and I was left in Tokyo. I didn't know where she was going, I was never told. They knew if they told me, I would be on my way to the area she was. It had been a month now. One long month since the girl I loved disappeared from my life. This had been the worst month of my life. My life was so empty without Ichigo in it.<p>

I had spent a good amount up in my room, moping. And if I wasn't moping in my room, then I was moping in other rooms. I had been barred from the Café area, because according to Mint, I was scaring off customers. Since Ichigo had left, the girls had picked up the slack, and did their best to cover Ichigo's absence. The place no longer seemed to glow with Ichigo's presence, and I could feel it in my heart.

A few days after she had left, was when I felt the worst of it. I was lying in my bed, staring at the ceiling. The only thought that was running through my mind was that of Ichigo. Every side I saw of Ichigo. The first night we made love was the one I thought of frequently. I could still feel how soft her skin was, how she tasted and how she smelled. I could still her moans when I stuck my fingers in her and when I entered her. She felt so good and she was so _tight_. I felt myself getting hard, and I cursed myself. Damn it. Why the hell was I getting hard at a time like this? Any other time, I would have Ichigo, but I didn't anymore.

I got up and decided to take a walk to clear my head. Of course I had to wait for a little bit for the blood to leave a certain member on my body. After that, I left the Café and went to a nearby park and sat down on a bench. Summer was fast approaching, and the cherry blossoms were falling off the trees. Ichigo always loved the sakura trees. I found myself wondering if she could see the trees where she was.

I sat on that bench and watched couples walk by. I didn't like watching them. It reminded me of a certain red-head I couldn't have anymore. I just wish I knew why she left. There was totally something she wasn't telling me. And I wish I knew what it was. A frustrated sigh escaped my lips, and the passers-by looked at me shocked. I stood and walked away from the park.

The Café was closed today, and I knew today was one of Mints days from ballet, so I headed toward her mansion. When I got there, I was lead into the parlor where I was served tea while waiting for Mint. I could hear her grumbling when she came into the room I was in.

"What are you doing here, Ryou? This isn't about Ichigo is it?"

I didn't answer and my silence seemed to answer her question. She sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose

"Ryou, I told you that I don't know where she went. She wouldn't even tell me! And I am her best friend! Her parents won't even tell me," Mint said, looking up at me.

"Did she say why she was leaving?" I asked.

"She said that she had 'some things she needed to sort out' or something like that. I know that was a lie. I could tell there was something else, but she was too afraid to say anything. I know she wanted to tell me what it was, but there was something holding her back. I just wish I knew what it was."

At that moment, her phone rang. She looked down at the screen and gave a bland smile. I could tell, it was Ichigo. Mint answered the phone and talked a few minutes before she handed the phone over to me. Ichigo was in mid-sentence, talking about how nice her town was and how she could see the ocean from her apartment. When she paused for breath, I interrupted her.

"Ichigo, are you in a port town?"

The other line got really quiet and I was afraid she had hung up on me.

"Ryou? Is that you?" she asked.

"Yes. It's me. Tell me where you are. I want to see you! I want to bring you home!" I said.

The other line got quiet and once again, I thought she had hung up on me.

"I'm sorry, I can't do that," she said, then the line went dead.

I was overcome with so many emotions. I felt hurt, betrayed, angry and lonely. She was the only girl I had ever loved, and she was gone from my life. I handed the phone back to Mint and stood up.

"I'm going to head on home. I will see you at work tomorrow."

Mint saw me off and I walked home slowly. Night had started to fall and I stopped for a few minutes to look up at the sky. I couldn't see the stars, due to the damn streetlights. It was much too bright in Tokyo. The only thing I could see was the moon. My mind wandered back to Ichigo. Could she see the stars from where she was? Which port town was she in? There were many port towns. But, there was no way I could search every single one. Trying to find Ichigo in a port town would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

I sighed as I started home again. My heart felt heavy, and I knew it was a broken heart. The only way that it could be cured was to have Ichigo back in my arms where she belonged. When I reached the Café, I ignored Keiichirou's questions about being hungry and went straight to my room. I hadn't eaten much since Ichigo left, and it was evident. I didn't care though.

I climbed into bed and covered myself with my blanket. I could still smell Ichigo's scent on it, even though it had been washed. I felt tears prick my eyes, and I couldn't hold it any longer. I cried.

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><p>AN: So, what did you think? Ichigo has some serious issues, and I think Ryou has some serious issues, too. Like I said above, only three more chapters remain. I have been working on this story for over a year now, and I am sad to see it end. But don't worry, I will write more Ichigo and Ryou fanfictions! They are the only couple for me! Oh, I also got a turtle. Lol. Anyways, read and review. Remember, constructive criticism is welcome, but please, no flames!


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Hello everyone! Smurf2005 here with a brand new chapter of _Smile for Me_. We have now reached the climax, and we have two chapters left after this one. I have been working on this story for over a year now, and I am happy to see the idea I had come to fruition. I must warn you, this chapter is sad. Anyways, Ohayocon was last weekend (the 18th-20th), and while I was going to the rave, I saw a two girls, one dressed as Ichigo and the other dressed as Zakuro. I got a picture. Anyways, enjoy chapter twelve!

Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew. Tokyo Mew Mew_ is owned by Ikumi Mia and Yoshida Reiko.

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter Twelve<span>

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><p>I was about six months pregnant, and even though I loved living in Wakkanai, I found myself longing for Tokyo. And not because I missed the town, but because I missed my friends and family, and I missed Ryou. Ryou was the main person I missed the most. Every time my child moved inside of me (which I found out was a boy), I would think of Ryou and loneliness would take hold of my heart. I must have been stupid to leave and not tell Ryou about the baby. I keep thinking that maybe I should go home, because I knew Ryou would welcome me back. But, fear was keeping me here in Wakkanai.<p>

I always caught myself thinking about him. I kept wondering what he was doing. Was he thinking of me? Or did he forget about me and hooked up with someone else? I found the latter hard to believe. Ryou had been in love with me since he first met me. So, I knew that that wasn't the case. But, my mind would always consider that possibility.

"Maybe I should go back to Tokyo," I said to myself.

I was standing on the port in Wakkanai. Looking at the ocean always reminded me of Ryou. It was a chilly day, and I was bundled up in a heavy jacket. My child rolled over inside of me, and I placed my hand on my stomach. I took it as a sign. I decided to go back to Tokyo.

When I got back to my apartment, I called my mom and told her I was coming home. She was so happy, but when I told her that I was going to move into the Café with Ryou, she seemed a little disappointed, but my being back in Tokyo was enough to make her happy. I also told her that I was going to pay back the hundred thousand yen that Dad gave me.

It took me a week to get all my belongings gathered and get them shipped home. Only my mom and dad knew I was coming back to Tokyo. I wanted to surprise Ryou and the girls, so I didn't contact them. I knew they would be surprised to see me pregnant. No one was expecting me to be pregnant, and they would all know that it belongs to Ryou.

On the day I was going back to Tokyo, I carried a suitcase with me and I felt my child stir again. I smiled and I felt like a weight was slowly lifting off my shoulders. I had decided that as soon as I got back to Tokyo, I was going to go tell Ryou about the child we made together the first time we made love. I climbed on the bus that would take me to Sapporo, and then board a train.

After a few hours, I arrived at Sapporo and I headed for the station. After a couple more hours, I was on the train, on my way back to Ryou. I was excited that I would get to see him again. The hours seemed to go by so slowly, and I was growing impatient.

I arrived in Tokyo mid-evening. It was around eight in the evening, and my mom and dad were there waiting for me. They gave me a hug and I left my suitcase with them and I took off out of the train station. I wanted to see Ryou so badly. So, I stopped to get my bearings and I called Keiichirou.

"Hey, Keiichirou, it's Ichigo," I said into the phone.

"Hey, Ichigo! How's it going? Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Where is Ryou?" I asked.

"He just left," he said.

"Do you know where he is going?"

"I think just for a walk. Why do you ask?" Keiichirou asked.

"I am back in Tokyo. Please don't tell Ryou if you see him. I want to surprise him."

Keiichirou and I hung up and I headed toward the café. If he had just left, and if he was going on a walk, he wouldn't be far. I reached the café and I walked around the blocks looking for him. I hadn't received a text from Keiichirou yet, so I knew Ryou wasn't home. He was still walking. According to Keiichirou, Ryou had gone on a lot of walks since I broke up with him. That was the thing I regretted the most. I was so stupid to dump him. The only thing I managed to accomplish was hurting both of us. But, Ryou was hurting more than me. I had broken his heart and I regretted it.

I walked around a few more times when I spotted him across the street. He was walking slowly and he looked depressed. I had done that to him. I was the one that made him so depressed. I felt a twinge of guilt in my heart and I ran across the street.

"Ryou!" I called out.

He stopped and turned around. His eyes widened as he took in my appearance.

"You're pregnant?" he asked first.

"Yes, I'm pregnant," I answered.

He was quiet for a moment, as the thought processed.

"Is it mine?" he asked.

It was my turn to be quiet. I hesitated and I opened my mouth to speak.

"Yes, it's-" I started.

Before I could tell him that the child was his, a random mugger came out of nowhere behind me and demanded money from me. I didn't have any money on me, and when I told the man, he grew angry. He was holding a knife, and he when he went to stab me, Ryou got in the way and was stabbed instead. I watched as the blood seeped out of his body and fear took hold of me. The guy had gotten away, but I didn't care. The only thing I was worried about was keeping Ryou alive.

Passers-by were calling for an ambulance and the police, and I was on the ground with Ryou, trying to staunch the bleeding. Tears were streaming down my face. I could hear the sirens in the background, but they weren't coming fast enough; I could actually feel Ryou's life leaving him.

"Ryou, please don't die," I said.

He lifted his hand and placed it on my cheek, a sad smile on his face.

"Ichigo, please listen to me," he said, struggling to breath, "I want you to keep smiling for me."

I shook my head and a couple tears hit his face.

"I can't smile without you in my life," I said.

"Please, Ichigo," he said again. "Smile for me."

His hand slipped from my face and thudded to the ground. His eyes closed and his breath stilled. The tears fell from my eyes faster and a strangled scream was released from my throat. I leaned forward and I buried my head in his chest, sobbing controllably. I lost the one man I loved. I was consumed with guilt. I never got to tell him about the baby that was his and I never got tell him that I loved him. Even his last thought was of me. He told me to keep smiling for him. To me, that was his way of telling me that he loved me.

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><p>AN: Well, what did you think of this chapter? I start to tear up as I was writing this. This was a tough chapter to write, mainly because of the content. I had this wrote in about an hour. Sorry to all the Ichigo and Ryou fans that wanted them to get back together. I do hope you continue to support me and read the last two chapters. I will try to post them at the same time, so there might be a bit of a wait. I would like you to read those, since that is where a lot of things will be explained and you will meet their child, so please stick with me! Anyways, read and review. Remember, constructive criticism is welcome, but please no flames.


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Hello everyone! Here is chapter 13 of _Smile for Me._ I am sorry that the last chapter did not go over well with some of you, but there was a reason I killed Ryou. And that was because of this name. I wanted the last thing he said to Ichigo was "Please, smile for me" and it will be repeated in the next chapter. Just one more chapter and this story will be done. I am posting that today as well. I do have another Ichigo and Ryou story in the works, and I am trying to think of a plot, but I promise it will be happy. Anyways, enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew. Tokyo Mew Mew_ is owned by Ikumi Mia and Yoshida Reiko.

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter Thirteen<span>

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><p>A year and a half has passed since Ryou died. Our son looked so much like him. The same blond hair and the same sapphire blue eyes. I could see Ryou in him, and every time I looked at our son, I saw Ryou looking back at me.<p>

I was still consumed with guilt and grief over what happened. It was almost like I had killed him. If I had told him in the first place that I was pregnant with his child, this would have never happened. But, then again, maybe we weren't meant to live in the same world. Maybe we were destined to be apart like this.

No else seemed to blame me for his death. I was the only one blaming myself. The girls were a little resentful that I had kept my pregnancy from them, but they never said I was the one who killed Ryou. The guilt was eating me up, and there were times I did not want to go on. I wanted to join Ryou in death. However, I would look at my son, and realize that I couldn't leave him here without his parents. He already didn't have a father, but he needed his mother; he needed me.

Currently, he was walking between Mint and Zakuro, whom had come over to visit. For fifteen months old, he moved pretty quickly. I was sitting back, sipping tea and watched as the girls tried to coax my son over to them by holding out such expensive toys. This was almost an everyday occurrence. My son and I lived in the Café with Keiichirou. This was the only place I could feel close to Ryou.

My parents were disappointed that I wasn't moving back in with them, but they understood why I was moving into the Café. After all, this was where I conceived our son. Every time I watched him, I imagined what Ryou would say if he saw our son.

"Ichigo, I can't believe you kept this a secret from us! I thought we were all friends!" Mint said, looking over me.

My son had gone over to Zakuro, since she had a cookie for him. I rolled my eyes. I had heard the same thing for over a year now.

"I told you why I didn't say anything," I said, taking another sip of my rose tea.

"Ichigo, what you told us doesn't even make sense. What you should have done was tell Ryou. You know he wouldn't have rejected you. He would have been happy," Zakuro said. "Keiichirou told me that Ryou always wanted a family. He would have been able to start his with you. He loved you for many years, and when you left like you did, he was so depressed. He must have been so happy to see you when you came back. And… you were the last thing he saw; the woman he loved."

Silence fell in the room. It was only broken by the little boy sitting on the floor, cooing and shoving a toy in his mouth. Mint kneeled down on the floor and gently removed the toy from his mouth. She looked up at me with her piercing eyes.

"We were happy to see you back, too. But, I think Ryou was the happiest. After all, he waited for you. He waited for you while you were dating Masaya and he waited for you when you left for Wakkanai. In a way, I understand why you left, I understand that you were afraid that he would reject you, but I know that you know that he wouldn't have. He loved you too much to just leave you. If anybody rejected anyone, it was you. You were the one that rejected him."

Once again, silence filled the room, except the occasional cooing from my child. Not much was said on the subject after that. When Mint and Zakuro finally left, early evening had fallen, and I had to get out of the Café. So, my son and I took our daily walk to the place I first met Ryou.

The place I first met Ryou was the bank of a river I helped Masaya clean so many years ago. I remember that the biggest thing in my life was trying to get Masaya to date me. After all the stuff I had been through, that seemed so insignificant. I watched my child run around on his small toddler legs, and I thought about the first time I met Ryou. He saved me from getting attacked by a chimera anima. That was when I found out I was a Mew Mew.

My son tripped on a small rock and fell forward. I started toward him to see if he was okay, but before I reached him, he stood up and continued to run around. I smiled slightly and rubbed my head. Well, he got his resilience from me at least.

I looked around and my eyes landed on the tree Ryou was in the first time we met. I found myself thinking that if I had never become a Mew Mew, I wouldn't have met Ryou. If I hadn't become a Mew Mew, Ryou might still be alive. He might have gotten together with someone else. He might have been happier. But, then I wouldn't have my child; the child that looked just like him.

So many "what-ifs" swam in my mind. Fate was a tricky thing. Everything happened for a reason, and a big part of that was due to Fate. I believe that Fate was the reason I met Ryou, the reason we made love, and the reason he died. But, then I also believed that I was being punished. Punished for not telling Ryou about the child that shares his face. Perhaps he still would have died, even if I stayed.

I looked over at my son, and he was sitting in a bed of wildflowers. He was picking them, and he saw me looking, he smiled; a smile that was just like his fathers. He toddled over to me and handed me the flowers. I took the flowers and picked him up. As we left, I knew that someday I would have to tell him why we went to that place every day.

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><p>AN: Well, what did you think of this chapter? I hope this chapter made up for the fact that Ryou died in the last chapter. As you can see, Ichigo is filled with a lot of guilt, and in a way, that is how I feel right now about what I did to Ryou. But, I hope the last chapter will make up for it, too! Remember to read and review. Constructive criticism is welcome, but please, no flames!


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Hey all! Smurf here with the last chapter! Just like I promised, I am posting this chapter along with chapter thirteen. This is officially the longest _Tokyo Mew Mew_ story I have ever written. Also, it's the longest story I have ever written. But, my _Harvest Moon _story will be even longer. Like I said in my last chapter, I do have another Ryou and Ichigo story in the works. I haven't started writing it yet, but it is in my mind. The summery is forming in my head and all I need to do is write it. It will be a happy ending though. Anyways, enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew._ _Tokyo Mew Mew_ is owned by Ikumi Mia and Yoshida Reiko.

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><p><span>Smile for Me- Chapter Fourteen<span>

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><p>He was staring at me with his sapphire blue eyes. They were filled with determination. I averted my eyes and looked down at my cup of rose tea.<p>

"Please, tell me, Mom," he said.

I avoided his eyes. I couldn't look him in the eye. And I heard him sigh. I closed my eyes and gathered up the courage to look him in the eye.

"Well, I guess you have the right to know. He was your father, after all."

I was sitting with my son, Shirogane Tsubasa, in the café. He had a cup of milk coffee and I had a cup of rose tea. He was getting ready to leave for his classes, but he wanted to talk to me about his father. I had avoided telling him about Ryou since I always thought he wasn't old enough. Eighteen years had passed, and I never got married; I never allowed myself to fall in love.

Tsubasa was being patient. He was quiet while he waited for me to speak. It was almost like he had his father's patience.

"Mom," he said again, "I need to know about Dad."

I sighed again and looked down at my tea. I didn't know why this was so hard. I assumed it was because I never talked about it. After everything had been settled, I never spoke about Ryou's death. Talking about it made it seem more real, and I avoided talking about it. Even now, I still believe that he is still alive and he will come through the Café doors at any moment. I looked up at Tsubasa and took a deep breath and told him my story.

"I met your father when I was twelve," I started.

I told Tsubasa everything. I told him about Masaya, about being injected with the genes of an endangered species, about becoming Mew Ichigo and everything that followed.

"It wasn't until much later that I realized I loved your father. I didn't know he loved me at the time."

I told him the part of the story where I was forced to go to the party with him, how I confessed and he laughed at me. Then I told him how I ended up sleeping with Ryou, and everything that followed after that.

"So, when I arrived from Wakkanai, I ran off to see your father. I called Keiichirou, looking for him. He said Ryou had gone for walk, so I searched for him. I found him not far from the Café. I called out to him, and he looked surprised to see me, especially since I was six months pregnant with you. He was shocked to see me pregnant, and he asked me if it was his.

Before I could say anything, I got confronted with a mugger. He wanted my money, but all I had was my phone. I had left everything else with my parents. When the man learned I had no money, he grew angry and tried to stab me, but your father got in the way and was stabbed instead. He died in front of me. I held him as he bled out. But, he said a sentence to me that will stay with me for the rest of my life."

"What did he say?" Tsubasa asked, quietly.

"He said 'Please Ichigo. Smile for me'."

Silence followed that last sentence. Tsubasa looked like he was thinking and I took another sip of my tea, that had started to get cold.

"Mom, was the reason you never told Dad about me was because you were ashamed of me?"

I looked up at him surprised. I didn't know what prompted him to ask that question, but I shook my head no.

"I wasn't ashamed," I said. "I was scared. I didn't know how Ryou would have reacted. But, there was always a part of me that knew he wouldn't have rejected me. I should have listened to that part of me. But, I was just too scared to listen to it."

Tsubasa pulled out his wallet and opened it. He took out a piece of paper and he handed it to me. I took and saw that it was a photo of me and Ryou.

"When was this picture taken?" he asked.

I was a little stunned. How did he get a picture like this?

"How did you-?" I started.

"Keiichirou gave it to me. Tell me. When was this picture taken?"

I looked down at the picture and studied it.

"This was taken shortly after Ryou and I got together. At this point, you had already started to grow inside me and I didn't know."

I handed the picture back to him, and he scrawled on the back that the picture was taken eighteen years ago. He placed it back into his wallet and fixed his sapphire blue eyes on my face.

"Do you regret it? Do you regret leaving and not telling Dad about me?" he asked.

I sighed and looked down in shame. He was asking all the hard questions, but, I had to answer them. He had a right to know.

"Yes. I do. I regret leaving. But, I was scared. I only left because I was scared. But, every minute I spent away from Ryou was miserable. I loved Wakkanai, but I loved Ryou more."

"Do you think he would have survived if you hadn't left?"

That was the question I was waiting for. It was also the same question I kept asking myself. I had asked myself that question for eighteen years.

"I don't know," I heard myself answer. "That is something I cannot answer. There is a part of me that would like to believe that he would survive, and then there is a part of me that believes that we weren't meant to live in this world together. Perhaps I am being punished by Fate. It's hard to say really."

We fell quiet again. Tsubasa looked at his watch and stood up.

"I need to get to class now," he said.

I nodded and stood up. I walked around the table to him and reached up and placed my hand on his cheek.

"Remember to smile for me," I said.

He looked down, his eyes closed. Then, he suddenly looked up at me, his sapphire blue eyes piercing my brown eyes, just like Ryou's used to. He smiled and placed his hand over mine.

"Mom, Dad would want you to smile, too," he said. "So, please, smile for him."

He turned away and walked out the door. I watched him go; the son I made with Ryou. Tsubasa was the thing that brought me back to Ryou. And it was my own insecurities that killed him. But, Tsubasa had a point. What I needed to do was smile for Ryou, but also for Tsubasa. I went outside and looked up at the sky. As I watched the white clouds scud across the bright blue sky, I smiled. I smiled for myself, I smiled for Tsubasa, but most importantly, I smiled for my one true love, Ryou.

The End

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><p>AN: Well, what did you all think? I do hope these last two chapters made up for me killing Ryou. I am so sorry I killed him! But, I had no other choice! In order for this idea to work, I had to kill him. I do hope you all understand. I promise the next story won't be sad! It will be happy! So, I hope you all read it! I do want to take this time to thank all of you that read and reviewed my story. It made me so happy. I know this story didn't end the way you wanted, but I hope this has turned out to be a favorite of yours. It actually became a favorite of mine. I know it had a rocky start, so I am happy that it evened out the way it did. Anyways, read and review. Constructive criticism is welcome, but please, no flames. See you in my next story!


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